Former secretary of State Condoleezza Rice speaks before the California Republican Party 2014 Spring Convention on Saturday, March 15 in Burlingame, Calif. / Ben Margot, AP

by Martha T. Moore, USATODAY

by Martha T. Moore, USATODAY

She's a former secretary of State who gives a great speech, has a well-known smile and is a hot political property: making campaign ads, rallying the party faithful, and, on Wednesday, keynoting a $1,000-a-plate Washington fundraiser.

Cue the 2016 speculation: Is Condoleezza Rice acting like a future candidate?

Rice, who served as secretary of State for President George W. Bush from 2005 to 2009, has been busy with Republican midterm politics all month.

First she headlined a March 6 fundraiser for Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell at the University of Kentucky basketball arena. On March 15, she spoke to California Republicans at their state convention. On Monday, the super PAC American Crossroads went on TV with an ad starring Rice in support of Alaska Senate candidate Dan Sullivan, who is challenging Democratic Sen. Mark Begich. On Wednesday, she was the headliner at the National Republican Congressional Committee's annual fundraising dinner.

She also mentioned she likes the idea of the nation electing a female president. "I think it would be terrific. I really look forward to that day," she told Parade magazine earlier this month.

Others have sparked more speculation based on less. One trip to Iowa or New Hampshire and she'd be at the top of the list of potential presidential candidates. There is no clear front-runner for the Republican nomination for 2016, and the GOP has emphasized its desire to appeal to women and minority voters.

"It's important for the party to be able to have many different faces out there,'' says political consultant Ashley O'Connor, a former Bush and Romney campaign ad director. "I'm thrilled to see her out there. If she ever decided to run for anything, I would volunteer.''

No speculation necessary, says Ari Fleischer, former Bush press secretary. "I recommend you conclude that it's Condi being Condi,'' he says. "I do not think she is running for president. She is not. She is being very helpful to the cause as she always has been.''

During the 2012 presidential campaign, Rice raised money for 2012 GOP nominee Mitt Romney and wowed Republicans with a prime-time speech at their convention.

"This is nothing new for Condi; she's always done it,'' Fleischer says. "The only thing that's different is that it's such a wide-open political field (for 2016) that people want to know, is it more?"

Rice's speech at the 2012 Republican convention "really opened up a whole new vein of blood for her, in terms of people saying this is an important and powerful voice in the Republican Party,'' says GOP pollster Kellyanne Conway. But Rice has described herself as "mildly pro-choice,'' and that would be a tough sell with Republican primary voters, Conway says. "Her ideology doesn't match a lot of these voters in early states.''

Rice would have to leave several day jobs to run for anything: She is a fellow at Stanford University's Hoover Institution; a partner in the business consulting firm RiceHadleyGates; on the selection committee for college football playoffs; and writing a book on diplomacy to be published next year. She also recently joined Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg's "Ban Bossy" campaign to encourage leadership among young girls.

Unlike Hillary Clinton, another highly visible ex-secretary of State, Rice has said she has no plans to run for any office. "You're not going to get that chance'' to vote for her for president, she told Parade.

Rice's office did not respond to a request for comment.

Even if it never comes to pass, dangling the possibility of Rice as a candidate doesn't hurt Rice or the GOP, says Jennifer Lawless of the American University Women and Politics Institute.

"It suggests that that party would be hospitable to somebody who looks like her,'' Lawless says. "She's an excellent speaker, and she is somebody they can trust to go out and sell the party line and not deviate from the script. There is no wildcard factor for them, and the symbolic advantages are multi-fold.''